The Korean War and the challenges facing President-elect Roh Moo-hyun

Overview: North Korea announces its withdrawal from the 1994 nuclear non-proliferation treaty. However, despite international concerns about North Korea's nuclear weapons program, North Korea and South Korea seem to have warm relations, which are said to stem from what is called the "sunshine policy," a policy of engagement adopted by South Korea's outgoing president Kim Dae-Jung.

After students read "North Korea pulls out of anti-nuke agreement, despite 'sunshine'" and watch the first segment of CNN Student News (the video can be accessed from CNNStudentNews.com) present the following questions:

RESOURCES • CNN.com Special Report: Korea: States of War  • CNN.com: South Korea's key role  • CNN.com: South Korea's diplomatic dance  • CNN.com: How dangerous Is North Korea?  • Timeline: North Korea's nuclear weapons development  • CNN.com Special Report: The Two Koreas   • U.S. Embassy, Seoul  • CIA World Factbook 2002  • Korean History Project

1. Direct students to the Holt, Rinehart and Winston map of Asia (http://go.hrw.com/atlas/norm_htm/asia.htm) to locate the countries of North and South Korea. Then ask: When and under what circumstances did Korea become divided? What is the status of relations between North and South Korea? Why are relations between North Korea and the international community strained? What action did North Korea recently announce it would take regarding the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty? Why is this action politically significant?

2. What is South Korea's "sunshine policy"? According to the video, how effective is this policy? Who is Roh Moo-hyun? What is his position on the sunshine policy?

3. It has been 52 years since the start of the Korean War. Have students work in groups to learn more about this conflict, including its origins and American involvement in it. Pose the following questions to guide students' research:

• What was the Cold War?

• How was the Korean conflict representative of the Cold War?

• How have inter-Korean relations changed in recent years?

• What issues of the Cold War remain for the two Koreas to address?

• What are the challenges to peace on the Korean peninsula?

• How does the United States play a role in the stabilization of the region?

After groups share their findings, have each students write an essay describing the challenges that South Korea's President-elect Roh Moo-hyun faces as he bids to lead his country into the next era of relations with neighbor North Korea.

4. Have students identify the U.S. and South Korea's strategies for averting the nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula. Then ask: How do you think the Bush administration feels about President-elect Roh's decision to renew Seoul's policy of "sunshine" engagement with the North? How do you think President Bush and Roh feel about each other's political strategies? What are the potential ramifications of each strategy? Discuss.